Welcome to Hockey Inside/Out

UPDATE: We are working on a simple way for users to access profile pages. Thanks for your patience as we try to sort this out.

On Nov. 24, 2006, The Gazette launched a new hockey website, Habs Inside/Out, promising to offer fans of the Canadiens “absolutely everything” about the most famous hockey team in the world.

Over the last five years, the site has continued to grow and it now receives more than 2 million page views each month. We’re even planning to launch an iPhone application in the coming weeks.

After being told by the Canadiens to take the word “Habs” out of the site’s name, we have renamed it Hockey Inside/Out. For the time being, the current URL, habsinsideout.com, will redirect you to hockeyinsideout.com. But be sure to change your bookmarks to hockeyinsideout.com and update your RSS feeds.

We’ve changed the name and made some design changes to the site, but we’ll still continue to provide “absolutely everything” about the Canadiens, with our Gazette contributors Dave Stubbs, Pat Hickey, Kevin Mio and Mike Boone, who will continue to blog live during every Habs game.

Your HI/O usernames and passwords won’t change, but if you’d like to see your picture icon next to your comments, you will have to replace your profile avatar. We have simple instructions on how to do so herevia Gravatar.

You can modify your profile by clicking your username above the “leave a Comment” box, where it says “logged in as ‘your username’ “. Just click on your username, and you will be brought to the screen where you can edit your profile.

We hope you’ll like our new name and our fresher look. Please let us know what you think by emailing hockeyinsideout@montrealgazette.com or, as is the great tradition here at HI/O, by posting your comments below.

180 Comments

They have the nerve to say it is simple, well it is only simple when you know how.
I do not even understand the instructions, So if they say it is simple to get set up on this site, well I guess they don;t need this simpleton.

I am out of here until someone explains this technology to this simpleton.

I cannot fathom that the Canadiens can pull a copyright ownership over a nickname that fans have given the team. After allowing it for five years, this is nitpicking. I will truly have a hard time getting the same enjoyment here that I’ve had in years past. I feel terrible for Boone and Stubbs, whose efforts have gone into building this site.

They have the nerve to say it is simple, well it is only simple when you know how.
I do not even understand the instructions, So if they say it is simple to get set up on this site, well I guess they don;t need this simpleton.

I am out of here until someone explains this technology to this simpleton.

One more humble wish. Here should be same kind of “you are logged in as _______ “-notification at frontpage. I still believe this can work. Maybe this site is online as incomplete, so that we the users can wish for improvements?

The link didn’t work for me either. If the link to http://www.gravatar.com for some reason doesn’t work. You need to write it to your browser’s adress-space and go that way. After you give them the same e-mail adress you have here in your profile, you’ll get an activation link to crappy avatarsite and propably a tons of Viagra and online-Casino commercials to your e-mail.

I’m pretty sure this new version will be very good after those technical issues are fixed. I mean: You should be able to edit your post, signature’s are missing (that’s propably temporarily out of order), You should also be able to look other poster’s profiles…
So far I’ve found only one thing that sucks really bad, it’s that disgusting gravatar-thing. I really hate it.

The symbol accompanying What’s New in Hockey Inside/Out has me thinking football thoughts, for some strange reason. How about a hockey stick waving? Peter Puck doing a song-and-dance? Or right, okay, Donny Disk or Billy Biscuit then. Dressing room door opening? Pic of Hickey whispering to Stubbs who’s whispering to Boone who’s whispering to that doggie creature who has a surprised look on its face … Yeah, we gripe about everything.

First impressions? Yeccch! But rather than be accused of being a whiner who’s afraid of change, I’ll reserve further comment until I’ve had time to give the site’s new look a chance.

Yeccch!

(Okay, I’ll give it some more time. You’ve asked for comments so presumably a consensus among the commentators will influence the webmaster to revisit the new design. Oh, that’s what you were counting on. The chances of us reaching a consensus on anything are so remote you figure you won’t have to do anything. I think you might be surprised.)

Man, I agree. Did your lawyers check this out? I can’t believe you couldn’t use “Habs.” As for the new site, it looks cheesy, like a cheap WordPress template. This has got to be one of the biggest hit-generators for The Gazette. Couldn’t you guys have put a bit more resources into it? Not attractive at all. Ugly. (Sorry to be so blunt but better to be honest.)

Boone section is two-three days out of date. Site looks cheap and generic. Its normal for a new site to have some technical hiccups , but Hockey Inside Out doesn’t really describe what this site is about. Why didn’t you ask the readers about how to change it (especially the name) before you did it, instead of just letting us comment after the fact? Bleh.

Bill
Originally the format was “newest post went to the bottom of the page” way back in 2006 & early 2007 and actually IMO was a better idea since one could peruse (if you wanted to do that) the previous posts easier.

However, overall this new format leaves a lot to be desired and I don’t like any intrusions by a third party (gravatar) at all.
Cheers
A. Berke

It would help if I understood your new guidelines, before I critique. Are you not allowed to feature the CH? I can’t even find a Habs logo anywhere.. I’m not digging the color scheme, but it may just be the fact that the sizing of everything is off. For example your Hockey Inside Out logo (which I like) is miniscule, dwarfed by a nearly six time larger TIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDE banner. Really, not joking, it’s like visiting the Tide home page, which feautures a banner add for Habs Inisdeout Out. All your ads are so large, it’s comprimising the layout and aesthetic of your page.

I’ve lost the ability to edit? Avatars are off-site and handled by a third party?

Yuck. Sorry, I’ve got Boone and Stubbs on Twitter, so I’m pretty well covered there. If this new re-design turns out to be permanent, you’ve lost me as a user. I appreciate that there’s been an attempted facelift of the site, but this has been ten steps backwards.

I’m not a “fear of change” person by any means, but my God, you’ve gone from a wonderfully streamlined site design with everything easily accessible to a hideous all-white “busy” design, guys. I’m definitely not opposed to changing the HIO layout by any stretch, but this new one is honestly cluttered and all over the place, and it’s definitely no longer a pleasure to easily click through.

Further to my previous gravatar opinion, the following is on their website for registration:
” This system is the property of Postmedia Network Inc. (“Postmedia”) and may be used by authorized users only.

Use of the system is subject to any terms, conditions and/or policies which Postmedia may communicate to you from time to time, which includes without limitation, Postmedia’s right to retrieve, copy, listen and disclose any message, document or electronic communication accessed or transmitted by this system (collectively, the “Policies”). By continuing, you agree to comply with any such Policies.”

That means they’ll have access to my (and everyone else’s) privacy, send unwanted crap/intrusions and they are not part of the Gazette.

Couldn’t we have the previous system for our avatars. I don’t want my avatar appearing elsewhere anyways.
Sorry folks but this sucks major big time.
A. Berke

Change is violent and painful. This is going to take some getting used to. After all those hits and growing membership I kind of thought the Gazette would spring for something more fancy. there aren’t even any bells, let alone whistles. But we’ll make do.

This new format/HIO is not good and it’s not user friendly. Couldn’t the powers to be use the exact same format of Habs I/O and just change the name?
How do we get the avatar/gravatar working.
The gravatar web site was rather useless.
I have been posting for 4 years now and I miss the former HIO.
A. Berke

I am actually appauled by the amount of whining over the new site. Yesterday, there were more comments about the name change than the game that was to be played last night. Like any change, it just takes some getting used to.